1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to dispensing systems and dispensing methods. More particularly, the present invention relates to controlled access dispensing systems and related methods especially suited for use in industrial supply applications.
2. Description of the Related Art
In many business environments, the immediate availability of supply items is critical to the overall efficiency of the company. For example, in manufacturing companies, if certain consumable supply items (e.g., drill bits, cutting tools, commonly-replaced spare parts, etc.) are unavailable, production may be entirely shut down until such items may be procured. Accordingly, accurate management of supply item inventory is very important. In addition, controlled access to such supply items is often desirable to ensure that recorded inventory levels are accurate and to ensure that only authorized personnel have access to certain supplies.
As a result, many businesses employ a controlled access inventory system for managing such supply items. One method of controlled access is to locate the supply items within a secure area, commonly referred to as a tool crib, or “crib.” These cribs are often centrally located within the business facility and use one or more employees (i.e., a crib attendant) to ensure that only appropriate persons have access to certain supply items. In addition, the crib attendants are often responsible for tracking the usage of the supply items and periodically updating the inventory system.
However, the location of such cribs often makes retrieving supplies inconvenient to a large portion of the users of the supply items, which leads to stockpiling of often-used items. This results in the recorded inventory levels being inaccurate. In addition, the crib system often inefficiently utilizes the time of the crib attendant. Further, as is known, manual inventory control by physical inspection may be unreliable and often results in depletion of certain supply items before a restocking order is generated.
A generally more preferred method of inventory control and tracking is the use of automatic dispensing units located more closely to the actual point of use of the supply items than a traditional crib. Such dispensers often control access of supply items by requiring the user to enter a user identification code and only permitting access to supply items that the employee is authorized to access.
A common supply item dispensing unit is configured with a plurality of compartments having access openings that may be selectively unlocked to permit access to the supply item(s) therein. However, in known dispensing units, the dimensions of the access openings are generally limited to a relatively small number of predetermined sizes. In addition, once the dispensing unit has been installed, it is often prohibitively expensive to reconfigure the sizes of the access opening to accommodate changes in the types and sizes of supply items utilized in the business. Further, the dispensing units are often of a stand-alone design and, therefore, if the benefits of controlled access are desired, require the complete replacement of existing, standard shelving or storage cabinets.